Sniffles

Stuffy head, runny nose, cough, watery eyes and a slight fever...It all started Sunday morning when Riley woke up with a horrible cough - out of the blue - no warning what-so-ever. She didn't start off with any fever, so we thought, perhaps the cedar allergy was getting to her, like her Daddy. So, we figured it was still okay to go to our play date with the Rodriguez family. Then, when we arrived home Sunday late afternoon, she started coughing more, her eyes began to water and her little nose started with some sniffles. To battle the symptoms, we threw on our jammies and curled up together for rest and relaxation.

Monday, we woke up to the same, mild allergy/cold symptoms. We still took her to Mrs. T's and she did okay. She had a good morning, but as the day wore on, Riley's cough worsened, effecting her afternoon nap. When JD picked her up, she was simply exhausted and fussy. By the time I arrived home from Jury Duty, Riley was due for just a lot of TLC. She whimpered in pain...and JD and I both felt absolutely horrible, because there was little we could do. She rested most of the evening and we tried several suggestions from the nurse hotline...we relaxed in a steamy bathroom to help clear her stuffy nose, we kept her hydrated with plenty of fluids, we elevated her mattress, and we gave her a dose of Tylenol to help ease her pains and reduce the ever so slight fever.

She ended up crashing hard around 7:30 p.m., but coughed herself awake around 2:30 a.m. We teamed up to take care of her every need at the wee hour of the morning, including bottle, another steam session, and a little rocking. Within an hour we were all cuddled up close together for another hour or two of much needed rest.

Today, we battled over our decision of whether or not to take Riley to Mrs. T's. She was definitely coughing less, but still seemed like she needed some extra TLC from us. We thought we would play it by ear, give our angel another dose of Tylenol and hope for some good morning napping with Mrs. T. Then, JD would be on standby for a pick-up as needed. Although Riley was hanging tough, JD made the call before lunch and headed home to be with Riley, while I suffered through my first day of serving jury duty.

Tonight, we continued with another steam session, warm bath and quiet play time. We were fortunate enough to see some smiles return today, and while Riley's cough is dissipating, she is still under the weather. We are hopeful that she begins feeling better very soon.